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Portrait of William Goldman

William Goldman

(1931–2018) Playwright United States

281 quotes in 814 categories

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William Goldman was a playwright from the United States, best known for The Princess Bride.

Quick Facts About William Goldman

Born: August 12, 1931
Died: November 16, 2018
Nationality: United States
Profession: Playwright
Notable works: The Princess Bride

About William Goldman

He wrote 16 novels and many screenplays over a seven‑decade career. His adaptations of The Princess Bride (1987) and the original screenplay for All the President’s Men (1976) also earned major honors. He received three Writers Guild of America Awards, two Edgar Awards for best motion‑picture screenplay, a Hugo Award for dramatic presentation, and the 1985 Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement.

Awards & Honors

Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay Edgar Awards Writers Guild of America Award Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation

Quotes by William Goldman · Page 2

Hollywood is a pretty edgy place.

William Goldman

Edgy

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When I was your age, television was called books.

William Goldman

Age

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In Hollywood, no one knows anything.

William Goldman

Hollywood

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“Wow, brains as well as boobs.”

William Goldman

Boobs

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Have fun storming the castle!

William Goldman

Castle

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Cynics are simply thwarted romantics.

William Goldman

Cynics

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There is no room in my body for anything but you.

William Goldman

Body

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You have a dizzying intellect.

William Goldman

Intellect

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There were some things you did, no matter what, and when a friend needed help, you helped them.

William Goldman

Friend

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Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.

William Goldman

Death

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Inside and out, Westley's world was ripping apart and he could do nothing but crack along with it.

William Goldman

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“aaron would not come out aaron entered into agony.”

William Goldman

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You have to protect your writing time. You have to protect it to the death.

William Goldman

Death

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“I only wish we could stay for his grief - it should be Homeric.”

William Goldman

Grief

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He had risked his life and now it was walking away from him, hand-in-hand with a Ruffian prince.

William Goldman

Hand in hand

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One of the easiest things in the world is not to write... If it were easy, everyone would do it.

William Goldman

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“One final silly face. One blessed responding laugh. Fezzik closed his eyes then, thinking only this: thank God I was a giant…

William Goldman

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“But my mind is like a thin line; it travels badly. I go from thought to thought but not with logic, and…

William Goldman

Psychology

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Buttercup's mother whirled on him. 'Did you forget to pay your taxes?' (This was after taxes. But everything is after taxes. Taxes…

William Goldman

Buttercup

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“Butch: Now after we… wait a minute... Sundance: What? Butch: You didn't see Lefors out there? Sundance: Lefors ? No. Butch: Good.…

William Goldman

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Why do you wear a mask and hood?" I think everybody will in the near future," was the man in black's reply.…

William Goldman

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I seemed busy, busy, busy, but I suppose, if pressed, I might have admitted that, for all my frenzy, I was very…

William Goldman

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The boys. The beef-witted featherbrained rattleskulled clod-pated dim-domed noodle-noggined sapheaded lunk-knobbed boys. How could anybody accuse her of stealing them? Why would…

William Goldman

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“You fell victim to one of the classic blunders. The most famous is 'Never get involved in a land war in Asia.”

William Goldman

Blunders

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“What happens is just this: Queen Bella packs most of her wardrobe (11 pages) and travels to Guilder (2 pages). In Guilder…

William Goldman

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“There is no room in my body for anything but you. My arms love you, my ears adore you, my knees shake…

William Goldman

Affection

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“May my hands fall from my wrists before I kill an artist like yourself," said the man in black. "I would as…

William Goldman

Art

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“For there was now a wall of trees blocking any progress- -and Inigo would not stop bleeding- -and Westley would not start…

William Goldman

Nature

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“Hello there," Inigo hollered when he could wait no more. The man in black glanced up and grunted. "I've been watching you."…

William Goldman

Humorous

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“He had written to her just before he sailed for America. The Queen's Pride was his ship, and he loved her. (That…

William Goldman

Love

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“Has it got any sports in it?” “Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Poison. True love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beautifulest…

William Goldman

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“He always avoided arrest, and everyone except Yellin thought Falkbridge must be bribing somebody. Yellin knew he was bribing somebody, since every…

William Goldman

Money

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Get used to disappointment.

William Goldman

Disappointment

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The infant is ten and he stays,

William Goldman

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Who says life is fair, where is that written?

William Goldman

Fair

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The easiest thing to do on earth is not write.

William Goldman

Earth

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I'm not witch. I'm your wife.

William Goldman

Marriage

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Existence was really very simple when you did what you were told.

William Goldman

Existence

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I mean if we even had a wheelbarrow, that would be something.

William Goldman

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“We are men of action. Lies do not become us. -- Westley”

William Goldman

Action

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William Goldman by topic

Love (38) Life (31) Buttercup (28) Books (19) Thinking (17) Death (17) Time (15) Book (13) Writing (12) World (12) Princess (12) Writer (11) Princess bride (11) Parenting (11) Pain (11) Men (11) Humor (11)